City Manager

Just three days shy of the one-year anniversary of Paul Stansbury's termination, Danville still does not have a permanent city manager. City commissioners met in executive session for about two hours during a special meeting Monday. A crowd of about 15 people waited, many hoping for a hiring decision. But Mayor Bernie Hunstad only said, “We had a very productive session. There is nothing to report at this time to the public.” Commissioners then adjourned the meeting.

Danville City Commissioners interviewed two finalists for the vacant city manager position Monday, including Interim City Manager Ron Scott. The commission spent about two hours and 50 minutes in executive session separately interviewing two candidates for the job. The first was Scott; the second was a man city officials declined to identify.  Police Chief Tony Gray, at the commission's request, taped white paper to cover the windows of...

Danville Mayor Bernie Hunstad and other city commissioners formally swore in recently appointed City Manager Ron Scott on Tuesday night. Scott was one of three finalists interviewed in Danville for the position. The other two candidates were Matthew Candland of Maryland and Isaac Turner of Florida, according to financial records obtained under an open records request. Candland served as town manager of Sykesville, Md., for 17 years before last week accepting a similar position in Carlisle, Pa., according to The Baltimore Sun.  Turner was city manager in Venice, Fla., for two years until several city council members forced him to resign in February 2011, according to The Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

As Danville begins its fifth month without a permanent city manager, the City Commission is back to reconsidering the use of an executive search firm. The commission heard a presentation Tuesday on a new benchmarking service provided by the Kentucky League of Cities and decided to compare the costs of an in-house search with the cost of contracting with several search firms that made their pitches in August. Earlier this month, the commission appeared to be going forward with plans to form a committee of seven residents and two commissioners that would rank applicants for city manager.

The Winchester Board of Commissioner voted unanimously Tuesday evening to hire Matt Belcher as the new city manager. Belcher worked as assistant city manager in Paris for three years before serving as the economic development director in Lincoln County. “I'm confident that Matt will do a good job,” said Winchester Mayor Ed Burtner. Burtner said between 30 and 40 people applied for the city manager position and the city commission interviewed five candidates. Belcher had diverse experience, which includes serving as Winchester's interim city manager for five months in early 2006, he said.

The Danville-Boyle County Chamber of Commerce supports the decision of the Danville City Commission to include residents on the committee for the city manager selection process. We encourage the commission to select qualified individuals to serve as active participants on the search committee. This should include people with appropriate knowledge of our city manager/commission form of government who are informed on the issues facing our city.   People with experience in human resources and professional searches would be a definite plus, as well.

Danville commissioners have decided to bring the city to its manager as a way to abide by the requirement he live in the city limits. At Monday evening's City Commission meeting, City Manager Ron Scott and his wife, Janis Scott, addressed the commission “as may any citizen” to request annexation of their property. At 3245 Harrodsburg Road, the Scotts' property is just outside the city limits off U.S. 127 across from First Church of God. Scott said he thinks the voluntary annexation of their property of 20 years would be an asset to Danville.

Expenditures are expected to outpace revenue in the City of Winchester for the 12th consecutive year, according to a memo from former Interim City Manager J.R. Wilhite. The memo was included in budget information provided to the Winchester Board of Commissioners at Wednesday's annual budget workshop. Despite a 2011 payroll tax increase and expanded industry, the fiscal year 2014 budget still includes a deficit of about $1.1 million. The budget also includes a transfer of $400,000 from the capital equipment fund.

Recently I visited with an out-of-state relative who asked some troubling questions about Danville and the recent actions of our mayor. This relative happens to be a former City of Danville employee who keeps up with goings on here and knows what it is like to live here.  A good deal of our conversation was spent on issues related to the role and responsibilities of our elected officials. My relative pondered whether we understand that our form of government cedes little executive power to the mayor and wondered where the city manager was in all of this.

The Winchester Board of Commissioner voted unanimously Tuesday evening to hire Matt Belcher as the new city manager. Belcher worked as assistant city manager in Paris for three years before serving as the economic development director in Lincoln County. “I'm confident that Matt will do a good job,” said Winchester Mayor Ed Burtner. Burtner said between 30 and 40 people applied for the city manager position and the city commission interviewed five candidates. Belcher had diverse experience, which includes serving as Winchester's interim city manager for five months in early 2006, he said.

STANFORD - Lincoln County's Economic Development Director Matt Belcher is stepping down from his position at the beginning of May to assume the duties of city manager for Winchester. Neither Winchester Mayor Ed Burtner or city commissioner Rick Beach would confirm Belcher as the new city manager because the matter has not been voted on by the city commission. They hope, though, that he will not change his mind between now and Tuesday's City Commission meeting. “We will be taking official action Tuesday night (at the City Commission meeting,)

STANFORD - Lincoln County's Economic Development Director Matt Belcher is stepping down from his position at the beginning of May to assume the duties of city manager for Winchester. Belcher, who worked as assistant city manager in Paris for three years before beginning his three-year stint in Lincoln, will be returning to familiar job duties. “It's kind of what I had been doing,” he said. “I've been in the local government realm ever since I got out of grad school.” Belcher submitted a formal letter of resignation to his board of directors on Tuesday.

STANFORD - Lincoln County's Economic Development Director Matt Belcher is stepping down from his position at the beginning of May to assume the duties of city manager for Winchester. Belcher, who worked as assistant city manager in Paris for three years before beginning his three-year stint here in Lincoln, will be returning to familiar job duties. "It's kind of what I had been doing," he said. "I've been in the local government realm ever since I got out of grad school. " Belcher submitted a formal letter of resignation to his board of directors on Tuesday.

The Winchester Board of Commissioners approved three ordinances during its regular meeting Tuesday night that alter the city's regulation of fireworks, fire lanes and firearms. Commissioners approved second readings of the ordinances during the meeting, and the first ordinance amends the regulation of sale and discharge of fireworks. The changes stem from discussions in the fall concerning the time fireworks could be sold around the Fourth of July. The ordinance changes the dates of fireworks sales from June 26 through July 5 to June 27 through July 6. It also changes the time that fireworks can be sold each day from 10 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. to 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. This also extends the time for the Dec. 30 and Jan. 1 sales to 11 p.m. The amendments also allow the discharge of fireworks until 11 p.m. on those dates and prohibits fireworks to be sold in multi-tenant buildings.

After two listening sessions to hear from the public, and an online survey, Danville's city manager presented an outline Thursday of residents' opinions regarding the current fiscal year's budget. Ron Scott told commissioners and residents that the public ranked police, fire and 911 as the most important services the city provides. He said those three services were held in the same regard last year. The results this year are from a survey completed by just more than 100 people.

Some local officials are concerned about what they feel is a lack of representation in the Danville-Boyle County Economic Development Partnership from the city governments of Danville and Junction City. Danville Mayor Bernie Hunstad, a voting member of the EDP, has missed three out of the last four EDP board meetings, according to a reporter's audit of meeting minutes obtained under an open records request. Junction City Mayor Jim Douglas, also a voting member of the EDP, has missed all four of the last EDP board meetings.  On the other hand, Boyle Judge-Executive Harold McKinney has attended all of the last four meetings and Perryville Mayor Anne Sleet has missed only one. Both McKinney and Sleet are also voting members of the EDP. City and county governments can send an alternate member, but Danville and Junction City leaders have not typically exercised that privilege, according to EDP President Jody Lassiter.  At the end of Wednesday's EDP board meeting, EDP member Greg Caudill expressed his concern about Danville's absence from recent meetings.

Just when you thought Danville's city manager situation couldn't get any more peculiar, the man who currently holds the position came before the City Commission this week to ask a favor: Ron Scott needs the city to annex his property so he can keep his job without having to move. If this really is the end of the embarrassing city manager saga, it is as fitting as it is bizarre. It makes sense that a process begun when commissioners contorted the limits of reason - and the city's ordinances - mulling ways to oust Scott's predecessor Paul Stansbury, would conclude with having to bend the actual city limits.